BOILING DOWN QUESTION.

Patea Mail, Volume IV, Issue 398, 8 February 1879, Page 2

BOILING DOWN QUESTION.

(To ike Editor of the Tatka Mail.) Sxu, —Mr. Sherwood, in his letter of 29th Jarm my, tolls us “The lest question in the (joining election is to bo, will you vote for a wharf at the Heads—if not, you don’t go in.” This is a very adroit wav of setting up a dummy figure, dubbing it private interest, and coming forward himself as the champion of public rights, thus affording himself a fruitful theme for electioneering claptrap. He then puts his statements forward as the facts of the case. With your permission, I will now state my view of the case. Granting that a piece of land was originally set aside, and that the pilot was allowed the use of this land, the Boiling- Down Company having leased a small portion of this land, which was at the lime of our taking possession a useless swamp of no value to the pilot, and by a veiy heavy expenditure improved it so that it is now a valuable property, paying a ground rent of 60s. an acre, have materially enhanced the value of the land for the purpose of paying the pilot’s salarjL When applying for a wharf, the Boiling Down Company did not forward plans or particulars of extent of wharf, considering it was for the Harbour Board to say what kind of wharf, or to what extent they would allow a wharf, and to submit their plans for the sanction of the Governor in Council, and not for the Company to dictate to them. The argument in the letter of the Ist instant, that the Harbour Board would have a direct annual loss on their present wharves by the wharfinger having to collect wharfage from the Boiling Down Company, is so foolish on the face of it that it should not require notice. The Company are quite willing to give wharfinger a return of wharfage due each month and pay monthly, and to place their hooks at his disposal. Ho would also have the steamer’s freight list as a cheek ; so that it would entail no expense cither in labour or collecting. The other day a thousand sheep were driven from Hawera to Waitotara to be boiled down, which would have been boiled down at the Heads if we had the convenience for getting firewood landed and shipping tallow, &c. They entailed a direct loss to the owner of two shillings per head, the owner having to take that amount less at Waitotara than they were worth here, to say nothing of loss of time, &c., driving the extra distance. The boiling down of these sheep here would have given employment to six men. It would have required live cords of firewood at 30s. per cord, and 3,200 feet timber, and cooperage for 64 casks, £l7 12s. There would be required to be purchased from

settlers 149 pigs and a ton of pollard or damaged grain for feeding them. Then there would be the fellmongering of _the skins, and the loss of about 20 tons freight of tallow, besides the wool from the fellmom'or, and the wharfage and dues on same. Multiply this number of sheep by 20, which quantity I have no doubt the Company could have got through this season, and yon will then form some idea of the loss to this district and port through the obstruction of one or two members who, I can scarcely think, arc actuated by solely public motives. Believing the public will see what is most advantageous for the trade of this port. —I am, &c., JAS. NICHOLSON. Whenuaknra, 4th Feb., 1879.